


Depositions

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-09-08
Updated: 2001-09-08
Packaged: 2019-05-15 23:26:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14799971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of theWest Wing Fanfiction Central, a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in theannouncement post.





	Depositions

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

The Schedule: Depositions

Disclaimer: Not mine, never will be, but you knew that already.  
Achieve: If you wish.  
Rating: G to PG for language.  
Feedback: Is a rare and precious commodity.

(Voiceover) Previously in 'The Schedule': The Setup, Week Five, Special Dispensation, A Memorable Event, Safe Harbor, Shared Dreams Memorial Memories Dispositions

* * * Monday, Week Eleven * * *

It was tomorrow. Already the newspapers, weekly magazines, Dateline, 60 Minutes, and CNN had started virtually nonstop rehashes of the events one year ago at the Newseum in Rosslyn. The President was currently in the Mural Room with Tom Brokaw taping an interview to air tomorrow. Then later on Jane Pauley would step in for a longer interview with the President and Dr. Bartlet for Dateline. The fact that the skinhead shooters were after the President's youngest daughter and her boyfriend, the President's bodyman Charlie Young, had long since given way to the glamour of a Presidential assassination attempt.

The White House insisted that the staff was not the story and declined any more than a brief statement from Deputy Chief of Staff Joshua Lyman who had been critically injured in the shooting. While the news anchors would have loved to have more access to the handsome and charismatic Josh Lyman, the network brass insisted that he really wasn't a ratings draw. Outside the Beltway, America had only the vaguest memory that some guy from Bartlet's staff had been shot during the assassination attempt on the President. As far as the networks were concerned, there was no ratings advantage to exploring Josh Lyman's near-fatal injury -- the staff, particularly Josh Lyman, wanted to keep it that way. Dodging the press coverage at the anniversary of Rosslyn was cake-work. Dodging questions under oath that could be expected to arise during depositions, preliminary hearings, and --undoubtedly-- full-fledged Senate Hearings into the President's failure to disclose his relapsing/remitting multiple sclerosis was another thing entirely. If they were asked those questions, they had to answer. Then the press might very well find Josh Lyman a whole lot more interesting. The objective was not to be asked those questions.

"Josh! Josh" Did you see this!" Deputy Communications Director Sam Seaborn burst into Josh Lyman's office waving the morning paper.

"What?" Josh replied looking up at Sam from a mountain of paperwork.

"Another manhole cover blew off in Georgetown. This time is was right outside that restaurant we ate at the other night!"

"You're kidding me."

No. It says it right here. 'In Georgetown...' hum... ah! Here it is... 'A 150-pound cast iron manhole cover blew approximately 20 feet into the air in front of a Georgetown Restaurant. Flames seven feet high came out of the hole.' The picture shows it to be not 10 feet from the spot where you were waiting for me last week."

"I could have been killed..." Josh mock-whined. "Twice in a year. Three times if you count the banana..." He grinned at Sam. "I gotta say if I see any manhole covers coming after me I'm gonna get a little paranoid."

"You laugh now, but I tell you, the city's falling apart."

"Yeah, next thing you know mass hysteria, dogs and cats living together."

Sam looked puzzled.

"Didn't you ever see 'Ghostbusters'? Anyway, you're Dan Aykroyd or the other guy --Harold Ramis-- to my Bill Murray."

"Whatever. Listen to this... 'Pepco spokesman --who cares-- says that the methane explosion was probably due to a rat gnawing a cable."

"Ah... crispy critters."

Sam glared at the interruption and continued, "An average of fifty manhole 'events' occur every year in Washington and Pepco says that's not 'out of line'. 'It is however about eight times more than most utilities experience' according to some... expert...guy... somewhere..." he finished waving the paper at Josh. "We're not eating there again."

"Sam, what are the odds of it happening again?"

"Too high. You haven't had the best track record this year, buddy."

"'Kay. I just don't want the power going out again. Traffic was a mess the other morning when all the lights were out."

"Josh?" CJ asked sticking her head in the door. "You ready?"

"Yeah." He replied getting up and rolling down his shirtsleeves.

"It's just a quick informal interview. Tom Brokaw is going to ask how you're doing... how the recovery went..." CJ continued explaining as Josh put his suit coat on and followed her out the door.

"Yeah."

"You just tell him that it's been difficult --that you won't lie-- you still have some pain occasionally and that it was a traumatic experience and that you got through it thanks to God and your friends. If he asks about the rumor going 'round town that you're engaged, feel free to flash those dimples," she smiled and patted his back.

"I can handle that," he grinned giving her a brief glimpse of the famous dimples. He took a deep breath and said, "Wish me luck," as he pushed open the door to the Mural Room

* * *

Brokaw did ask about the rumor of Josh's engagement, but the segment was cut for lack of time. Josh's recovery from the shooting of a year ago had been completely overshadowed by the President's disclosure of his relapsing/remitting MS. The segment on Josh was all of 30 seconds long.

Tuesday and Wednesday were dominated by depositions in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee that was trying to determine whether there was sufficient cause to appoint a Special Prosecutor and pursue a full-scale investigation and hearings to determine whether President Bartlet had committed an impeachable offense. The junior staffers and assistants who worked in close proximity to the President and Senior Staff were interviewed about what they knew and when they knew. Bonnie and Ginger, Zach, Larry, and Ed were all dispensed with quickly: they knew nothing. Yes, they were aware that the Senior Staff had been holed-up in the basement, but they had no idea that it was about the President's health.

Joey Lucas was subpoenaed and Kenny interpreted her explanation of how she conducted a poll giving the Governor of Michigan a degenerative illness. She explained just how bad the poll results were --much worse than the actuality of the President's current numbers. The fact that they ran a poll did cause a ripple of excitement, but in a town where no one sneezed without running a poll, it quickly passed. Wednesday afternoon it was Donna's turn.

* * *

"State your name for the record."

"Donnatella Wingsong Moss"

* * *

"Windsong" Josh grinned maliciously as he and CJ watched Donna's testimony at the preliminary Senate hearing on C-Span.

"Josh..." CJ said in a warning tone. "Week 17."

"er... Right," he gulped. "It's just that she'd have to expect me to tease her about 'Windsong'. I mean, come on!" he pleaded.

"Her mother probably liked the fragrance." CJ said waving an arm to indicate she was out of her depth here but making her best guess. "Pregnancy can do strange things to a woman's body chemistry. And if you ever want to find that out personally, I suggest you pretend you never heard that."

"Yeah. Gotcha."

CJ and Josh returned their attention to the television as Donna explained she was the former assistant for Deputy Chief of Staff Joshua Lyman.

* * *

"And you're currently working in Human Resources at the White House. Can you explain why you left the job with Josh Lyman?

"Leo McGarry offered me the chance to prove myself with the temporary position in HR while Jan Davis, who heads that department, was on an extended maternity leave."

"When did you first start sleeping with Josh Lyman, Ms. Moss? You are his fiancée, are you not?"

"I am his fiancée, but I have not 'slept' with Josh Lyman." she smiled sweetly at the presumption of the Senator who had hoped to discredit her with his abrupt declaration of her rumored engagement to Josh.

"Maybe I should reword that," the Senator smirked. "By sleeping I mean 'sexual relations'. Have you ever engaged in sexual relations with Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman?"

"I have not. And I assumed you weren't really interested in the number of times Josh Lyman and I have fallen asleep next to each other on Air Force One..." She looked to her left at White House Counsel Oliver Babish knowing that she was not to answer more than the question addressed regardless of her desire to explain the situation. Explaining the situation might lead them into dangerous territory but she didn't want to be guilty of lying either as she belatedly remembered that 'sleeping' was sometimes just sleeping.

"I find that astonishing, Ms. Moss. I am truly amazed that any Democrat, much less a effete Ivy League liberal like Josh Lyman, would have the self-restraint to wait for the wedding... unless of course the wedding's just for show..."

"Senator!" Oliver Babish interrupted striking the table with his hand. "The White House would like to state that Josh Lyman and Donna Moss started dating about two months ago --a month after she left her position as his assistant-- and plan to be married. There is and has never been anything remotely scandalous about their relationship. They are simply two people who stared death in the face and have realized how close they came to never being able to have a life together. Two people who are very much in love and want to be married before God and mankind. Surely they should not be condemned for being willing to wait until their lives are more settled before taking their relationship to a more intimate level... That used to be considered a virtue."

The silver-haired committee chairperson hit her gavel on the table and said in a slight Southern drawl, "Thank you Counselor Babish, the Honorable Senator will please confine his questions to Ms. Moss's knowledge of the issues before this committee. The chair is not interested in a discussion of the changing morality or in condemning a couple for their restraint." Her dominantly conservative Southern Baptist constituents would not appreciate their values being ridiculed.

* * *

"Thank God for Leo." Josh muttered hugging his arms to his chest as he nervously watched the testimony.

"Yes!" CJ yelled, throwing her arms around Josh in a bear hug. "They did it! They did it!"

"Did you see that?" Director of Communication Toby Ziegler said rushing into the room followed by Sam Seaborn. "They shut 'em down!"

"Shhh... They're back," Sam hushed them, turning to the TV.

* * *

"Ms. Moss, when did Josh Lyman tell you about the President's MS?"

"Josh Lyman did not tell me about the President's MS," she replied calmly.

"Do you mean to tell me that Josh Lyman did not tell his fiancée that the President was lying to the American people by hiding his multiple sclerosis?"

"Yes. I mean to tell you that. And... uh... actually, Senator, we weren't engaged at the time."

The Senator peered harshly at Donna over his reading glasses. "And you didn't suspect that there was something wrong? You never asked if something was bothering him?"

"Oh, I knew there was something other than the fate of the captured spy-plane crew that was bothering him. I knew there was going to be a thing --a problem-- that would be coming out after we got the spy-plane crew back from North Korea. But, at the time, getting the crew back safely was the White House's primary objective."

* * *

"Good girl!" Toby muttered approvingly. Josh and CJ smiled at how deftly Donna had pointed out that the White House's priority was recovering the crew.

* * *

"I understand that you were the first person on the assistant level to be told. Who told you? When were you told? And more importantly why were you told?"

"Toby Ziegler told me the Monday before the President's announcement. You would have to ask him why he made the decision."

"We will. Did he indicate a reason to you about why he was telling you?"

"Yes."

"And what was the reason he gave?"

He indicated that Josh --Josh Lyman-- would be working on this 24-hours a day for the next few days and that Josh would need my help."

"So, even though you were working in Human Resources, you would be needed to help assist Josh Lyman?"

"Yes."

"Why's that, Ms. Moss?"

"Sir?"

"How can someone from HR assist the Deputy Chief of Staff? Or were you being paid to do one job while you were actually doing another?"

"I officially work under Leo McGarry. The HR job, to which I have temporarily been assigned, can easily be done during regular working hours: 8 to 5. The same cannot be said of the position of assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff. As that job is currently being filled by a variety of temporaries, I frequently spend my free evenings helping Josh out. Not because I have to, but because I want to."

"And who all did you tell about the President's MS after Mr. Ziegler told you?"

"I didn't tell anyone. I did, of course, let Josh know I knew."

"And how did you let him know you were aware of the President's condition?"

"I mentioned the code word that the Senior Staff had used for admittance to the meeting room."

"And after you mentioned this 'code word' what did Mr. Lyman say?

"Josh asked if I was okay. I told him I was fine and that I had arranged for some couches to be placed in a vacant office next to the meeting room and had put some pillows and blankets in there so that he and the other senior staffers could get some sleep."

"And what happened next?"

"What happened next?" Donna seemed puzzled he would ask.

"What happened after you found out the President's condition?"

"The President's secretary, Mrs. Landingham, was killed in a car accident that night. The President's MS didn't seem quite so devastating anymore. I helped Josh contact people and let them know about the accident. I helped him make the arrangements for her funeral. It had already been decided to have the President make an announcement on Wednesday. Mrs. Landingham's memorial service at the National Cathedral was set for earlier that day. We just had to persevere --to get through those two days. If there was any strategy other than just surviving, I'm unaware of it."

"What happened after the President's announcement?"

"Thursday afternoon Josh and I flew up to Manchester with Mrs. Bartlet for Mrs. Landingham's funeral. Josh was pretty tired from the non-stop pace of the previous couple of weeks so Mrs. Bartlet insisted that we stay the weekend. That's when we became engaged..." A gentle smile crossed her face at the memory.

The Senator frowned. This wasn't going the way he had planned. Instead of a lurid sex scandal, he was getting up-standing young staffers in love. "Thank-you, Ms. Moss. That'll be all for now."

* * *Wednesday night * * *

"Hey," Donna said opening the door of Josh's apartment and letting CJ and Toby in. Toby was carrying a couple of six packs of beer and CJ had a grocery sack with a couple of giant-size containers from the salad bar at the grocery where they'd stopped by on their way.

"Hey Donna!" CJ greeted cheerfully. "You were great! Wasn't she great, Toby?"

"Yeah, you were great, Donna," Toby mumbled distractedly. He handed Donna a six-pack and carried the other to the dining area where Sam and Oliver Babish were giving Josh the third degree. Josh finally snapped out a heated reply then groaned and buried his head in his hands.

"Have a beer." Toby said offering the six-pack to Josh.

"Thanks." Josh said quietly looking up and leaning back in his chair.

Sam reached out and snagged a beer from the six-pack and twisted off the cap. "Oliver?"

"No thanks, I'm good." He held up his half-full beer bottle.

"Pizza's on its way." Donna said to the men as she sat a stack of salad bowls, paper plates and forks on the table and then returned to the kitchen for the salad dressings, and napkins.

"How's it going?" CJ asked as she placed the plastic salad containers on the table and began tossing the salad.

"Josh is determined to get the President impeached and all of us thrown in jail for the next 20 years." Sam replied sincerely, at which Josh shot him a disapproving look -- he was nervous enough over his upcoming testimony without Sam joking about his getting the President impeached.

"Josh just has to work at swallowing his pride a bit." Oliver replied with a wave of his hand.

"I can see that... Elitist-Harvard-Jackass doesn't play well in Peoria, much less the U.S. Senate," CJ stated wryly.

"Hey! I know when to play humble!"

"You do. You just forget it too easily when you're under attack." Sam responded as the doorbell rang. "I'll get that," he shook his head as Josh reached for his wallet. "My treat."

"You sure? Thanks" Josh said as Sam nodded that he'd take care of the pizza delivery guy.

Oliver grabbed the nearby salad bowls and started handing them around. Toby doled out the silverware, sliding a napkin and fork over to Josh at the end of the table. Sam returned with the pizzas and the friends sat down to eat.

Over dinner the Senior Staffers and the White House Counsel returned to the task of preparing Josh for what promised to be several grueling days of testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. This was one of those times that Donna became very aware that she was not and would never be a member of the Senior Staff. She was, however, the voice of the people -- a regular working stiff who had not lost her innate common sense to the relentless world of 'spin-doctoring'. When the Washington insiders got carried away with worrying about perception issues and how to artfully dodge touchy subjects, Donna was the one to bring them back on focus by asking 'Why didn't they just explain the situation in simple terms the American people could understand. To play to the TV audience not the Senate.' The discussions were so intense they hardly noticed when the power went out. Donna simply lit some candles and they continued discussing the pros and cons of every potential question and answer. Whenever Josh felt under siege from the questioning, he looked up at Donna and seemed to calm down and gather strength. Finally they called it a night.

Donna and Josh had just gotten settled on the sofa for some serious cuddling and their usual evening ritual of rehashing the day's events when Josh's phone rang.

"Hey," Sam's voice said through the receiver. "I think there's a photographer watching for Donna to leave."

"Thanks." Josh disconnected and turned to Donna, "Time for you to head home. Sam thinks we're gonna have our picture taken when I walk you out."

"You don't need to walk me out. He couldn't get a photo of us that way."

"That'd probably be worse, then I'd be the jerk who didn't see you safely to your car. We'll give them their photo, but there'll be no story, since you're leaving five minutes after the others."

Josh and Donna walked nervously to her car, knowing that a photographer was lurking somewhere ready to jump out and snap their picture. When they reached her car without incident they stared at each other a moment wondering whether they should kiss or not. Finally, as they moved to put their heads they both started laughing. The flash lit up the night. Donna reached up and grabbed Josh's laughing face and pulled it to her for a kiss. The second photo was taken. Donna got into her car and drove away. The photographer snapped his third photo of an obviously smitten Deputy Chief of Staff staring after the woman he loved. The photographer made eye contact with Josh and shrugged. So what if he couldn't sell the photos to the right-wing rag as he'd planned. He'd sell them to The Times or The Post to go with a pitch for a story on America's Sweethearts.

* * * The End


End file.
